POPSUGAR Celebrity

Paula Deen: Then and Now

Feb 25 2014 - 1:20pm

And she's back in the saddle! Paula Deen [1] made a boisterous public reappearance at the South Beach Wine & Food Festival [2] this weekend. We'll have more then-and-now photos to come, but in the meantime, take a look at Paula's most jaw-dropping photo yet (taking a swig of tequila backstage). In addition, please enjoy Paula's horseback rides on chef Robert Irvine, because, yeahhh, that happened (twice).

Source: Corbis Images [3], Getty [4]

Riding Irvine: Then and Now

Paula riding Robert Irvine in 2011 looks about the same as it does in 2014.

Riding Irvine: Then

Deen and Irvine were spotted messing around during a cooking demo at the 2011 SOBEWFF, and the viral sensation went on to inspire the meme Paula Deen riding things [5].

Riding Irvine: Now

Paula did cook during her demo at this year's SOBEWFF, but she found a minute to ride Robert for old times' sake. "I truly am ready to get back in the saddle," she explained to the crowd [6].

Drankin': Then and Now

At the height of Paula's days in 2011, she had plenty of reasons to toast and drink with the crowd. In 2014, it's maybe another story.

Drankin': Then

Paula Deen [7], drink in hand, raised a toast to the 2011 SOBEWFF festivalgoers. Its contents could have just been Coke, but she was in Miami, after all. Chances are there was a lil shot of rum in there to get the Paula party started.

Drankin': Now

Backstage, prior to her demo at the 2014 SOBEWFF, Paula took a swig of tequila straight from the bottle. Some claim it was merely for courage [8] while others see it as a deeply troubling sign [9]. As of last year, Paula has claimed she no longer drinks. Perhaps Paula saw it as a glorious opportunity to get people talking about her again. Whatever the case, the photo definitely elicits an "eek" reaction.